
Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital Harvard Medical School

Finding-the-Path

A Problem-based Guide to Diagnostic Imaging Strategies in the Emergency Room

Leyla Azmoun, MD * Piran Aliabadi, MD * B Leonard Holman, MD

This guide is created for:
Emergency room physicians and trainees
Medical students
Radiology residents

INTRODUCTION ||| INDEX OF CASES ||| ALGORITHMS

Introduction

Finding the Path is a World Wide Web-based guide for the imaging evaluation of emergency room patients. Given the diversity of imaging technologies available, you, the ER physician, have to choose from a complex set of imaging modalities in evaluating your patients. With managed care's emphasis on cost-effective allocation of resources, choosing the most efficient and effective modality is crucial. Our problem-based module is designed to familiarize you with the various imaging technologies and their appropriate application to emergency room practice.

Using a disease-based approach, we start with the patient's clinical presentation, pertinent physical and laboratory findings. We discuss the proper sequencing of diagnostic studies for each patient, display the image findings and provide a brief discussion. We then present an algorithm which emphasizes efficient and cost-effective use of imaging modalities for the patient's disease.

Our goal is to provide you with helpful information about the appropriate application of radiological technologies, and thereby contribute to quality of patient care in the emergency room setting. These cases reflect algorithms developed and in practice at the Brigham and Women's Hospital. We hope that you find this electronic resource to be a useful adjunct to your clinical practice and to your decision-making process in imaging work-up of emergency room patients.